Tuesday, Feb. 24, 1998

Exciting program by Texas Boys Choir

Young Men's Ensemble adds new dimension to Fort Worth-based group

BY DENNIS RICHARDSON
Special to the Staff Writer

   The fine tradition of the Texas Boys Choir made its mark on the city Monday night at a performance sponsored by the Cathedral Concert Series.
   In the open splendor and vibrancy that the Cathedral Sanctuary offers, the clear and distinct sounds of the English-boys-choir-style rang with impeccable clarity and balance. Twenty-eight young men created a remarkable ensemble blend and added crisp consonants and well-shaped phrasing to give an exciting and varied program to the patrons in a near-packed house.
   This series of concerts, offered free to the community, provides a meaningful cultural outlet to the Coastal Bend. In addition to the unchanged voices that have been a 50-year staple of the treble choir, a new dimension of the Fort Worth-based group was present. A Young Men's Ensemble, that of older boys whose voices have changed, was added for this annual tour by second-year director Jerry M. Bierschenk to give a spectrum of music that allows for performance of typical mixed chorus selections.
   Not to be outdone, the young men themselves reached out to the crowd with a set of four-part male chorus numbers. This mixture provides the traveling group an array of programming possibilities. That variety was fully evident as the audience was treated to Renaissance motets, a duet from a Bach cantata, madrigals, spirituals, and folk songs in addition to a rousing final set of cowboy and patriotic songs that were cleverly presented with choreography and the boys sharply adorned in boots, hats and jeans.
   Most impressive, beyond the musical finesse and performances in Latin, German, Hebrew, French and Spanish, was the discipline and stage presence that the boys displayed. It's reassuring to see that character and self-control in a young man can be molded through involvement in music.